CXCL12 and heart failure: Specifically, studies have investigated SDF-1α in MI with and without ST segment elevation,[13–16] cardiac surgery,[17] heart failure,[18] patients at increased cardiovascular risk,[19] and in relation to human heart transplantation.[20] Similarly, remote ischaemic conditioning (RIC), a technique of cyclical, non-injurious ischaemia applied to an organ or tissue remote from the heart, has been reported by us and others to increase SDF-1α as measured using commercially available ELISA kits (typically from R&D Systems, UK).[12]